James Gray
James Gray, born on April 23rd, 2510, at Jerson, in the state of Downes, in Mars, is a soldier in the United Nations Space Command, member of the UNSC PIONEER Project, Orbital Drop Shock Trooper, and Reclaimer of Installation 03. Biography Early Life Childhood James was born on April 23rd, 2510, to a fairly wealthy family, in the thriving metropolis of Downes, located in the state of Jerson, in Mars. He was born to Edmond Gray, a 43 year old General who served at the battle of Harvest, and helped with the creation of the SPARTAN-Is, and Evelyn Gray, a photographer for the Jerson times. He had three brothers, Edmond Jr. Gray, Colin Gray, and Joe Gray. He had four sisters, Jennifer Gray, Carly Gray, Sarah Gray, and Colene Gray. All of Jame's siblings went on to different careers, Edmond Jr., and Joe went on to Soccer playing careers, Colin went on to art, Jennifer went on to writing, and created many books with Colin. Carly went onto movie making careers, and was a big success, Sarah went onto acting, and Colene went onto professionally Ice Skating. Jame's early years were like that of most children, he would usually play video games at home with his brothers, go swimming, and play with his pets, a gerbil named "Mike", a Tarantula named "Sheila", two dogs, "Buck", and "Carrot". His brothers and father would often go to football games, while James and his sisters stayed home, James playing video games, swimming, while his sisters would do other things. James often watched the Military Channel, and learned much about the war. Often commenting to his father and moth er that he wanted to "drive a Warthog", and "shoot a rifle", or even "blast Covenant out of the sky" with a Scorpion. His career was already set. His parents wanted him to become a doctor, or a lawyer, somewhat of noble professions, but James wanted to become a Marine in the UNSC. He often role-played with his father's replica of a MA5B ICWS, and would put on armor of his father's early armor, pretending to destroy Covenant with his rifle. He would often make strange sounds, which his older brothers, Colin and Joe, would make fun of. Every time his sisters would see him do this, they would roll their eyes, look back, and twirl their hair, as if disgusted by his behavior. In school, James excelled in most of his classes, except for Math, he couldn't stand math, so he didn't try. His parents encouraged him to try harder in math, and would often change the subject to getting into sports. At the age of twelve, James finally gave in to these attempts, and joined his school's paintball club. It was, after all, a sport. James knew hundreds of tactical maneuvers, and used them to his advantage in paintball. James became the star player of the paintball team, getting better every day. James was preparing for joining the UNSC, and joined the Gymnastics team, and the track team, excelling at both. As soon as James went into high school, he became the definition of a "jock", and did not take pride in this. So he slowed down his progress on sports, and went onto learning about other things, such as math, science, history, and other subjects in school. James became an overachiever, and unlike his brothers, was smart enough to do good in school to get into a college of his choice. James finished his school as the valedictorian, and, among the most popular, a jock. James went to college at the University of Jerson at Downes, one of the highest rated colleges on Mars, and studied hard, not joining the football team, but studying. His roommate, Frederick Yellow, was a "less fortunate, and less intelligent" person, who, in other words, was rambunctious, didn't focus on school, and had absolutely no manners. Frederick was paired with James so James could, "make him better", and teach him to be like James. Of course, this didn't work, and only distracted James from his studies. After a year with Frederick, James reached the breaking point, and to Frederick's dismay, was moved, for the fifth time. James was then paired up with Jamie Huntington, a fairly wealthy book-absorbed boy. The two boys made a great pair, and quickly became friends, setting up plans to go off to war together. After years together, they both went off with Master's Degrees, and never saw each other again. Military Career Early Career James went into the Marine corps eagerly, and did not expect what he found. Training was like being hit with a meat tenderizer, he said, and the bulletin displayed the men and women KIA, MIA, and WIA, thousands, millions. But James still trained hard. James was outstanding in most of his exercises, and Sgt. Gerardo Ramirez favored James, for his ability to quickly adapt to different conditions and situations. James trained with a years worth of time, and made a daily schedule, for keeping track of his exercises, and making free time between them. Many other soldiers thought of James as a, different, type of person, who took more time to focus on things that matter. James didn't care what they thought. He was becoming one of the best soldiers in the station, and ranked up in 6 months. His training time would equal out to 12 months. When James left the station, he had three friends with him, Daniel Smiles, Jack Burton, and Timothy Bauer. These three were training to become Orbital Drop Shock Troopers, and were switched to a different station, UNSC Shock Infantry Training Center, located on Sigma Octanus IV. ODST training The four soldiers began training under Staff Sergeant Michael White, the hardest, toughest, and cruelest training operator in the station. James and his friends trained hard. Pushing their physical and mental limits. They would often train in the HEV simulator, which would simulate dropping from an operator-set altitude. Jack Burton quickly ranked up to private, and was sent off into another squad, leaving the other three soldiers in the station. Timothy was next, and left, the operator barely approving of this. James went next, and his training was finished. His last thought was if he would ever see his friends again, he wouldn't. Meeting the Squad James met the squad a week after leaving the Training Center, James met his squad, aboard the frigate, the UNSC Argis. His squad included Avery James Lewis, a 52 year old Captain, who had just been assigned his fourth squad, Nathan "Cheap-Shot" Wilson, a wisecrack Lance Corporal, Jerry "Boomer" Buckham, a heavily yankee accented Gunnery Sergeant, George "Georgia" Ruin, a 22 year old Private First Class, and James himself. The squad's first mission was a low altitude drop onto a small planet on the outer rim, to eliminate a small rebel resistance. Forward Until Dawn It was night. And the squad had to destroy the base before Dawn. They had arrived at dusk, ready, Boomer with demolition charges. The squad dropped in on SOEIVs. Prototypes. The SOEIVs were more silent and accurate than the HEVs, so the squad took them. After dropping in, Cheap-Shot, queitly eliminated the guards, and the team went inside. The cameras spotted them hacking into the keypad, and when the door opened, 5 of the rebel soldiers opened fire. James and the squad retreated behind the door, and quietly opened it a quarter of the ways up. Boomer threw a Nerve Gas grenade into the room, and everything went silent. The squad ran through, and into the main building. Cheap-Shot, Georgia, and James, defended Avery and Boomer, while they armed the first charge. Upon leaving the main "foyer" like room, the crew traveled down an elevator. Boomer armed a charge there. The crew arrived out of the elevator, and pulverized the unsuspecting rebels outside. Boomer planted a charge there. The squad, from there, ran down the stairs to the communications room, and planted a charge there. They then ran to the HQ, shot everyone inside, and blasted down the doors to the Control Room. Destroying this would cause a MASSIVE gas leak in the area, timed correctly with the charges, causing a massive explosion. The team left the quiet building, and shot three of the large pipes outside. They immediately started to leak. The crew climbed onto a Pelican, and detonated the charges after a mile out. The entire squad was overjoyed, their first mission complete, with no casualties, and no gunshot wounds. Riding The Game James was dropped into a warzone in the middle of a rain forest in Earth. He was in a small UNSC bunker/Satellite station, that was heavily defended, until a full-scale invasion by the Covenant. James and Georgia were both nervous, their first mission involving the Covenant. James and the crew dropped out of 20,000 feet, into the warzone, and began their war. NOTE: The following will be written in story format. The squad landed. James looked at Georgia, who looked back, she smiled at him, and then blasted a Major Domo with her M90 Shotgun. James swerved around and immediately looked at the Pelican hovering above. It was carrying the Warthog the squad would be riding off in. James ran forward, and shot three Minor Grunts with his RAR-144. Their light-colored blood spattered onto the dirt, giving it a sticky texture. James heard screaming, and looked around, a marine was being chased by a Sangheili Zealot. James fired at the Zealot, blinding him, and stunning him. James ran forward, and pulled out his M6C/SOCOM. He fired at the Zealot as fast as his finger could go, the Golden Sangheili's turquoise shielding gleaming in the sunlight. Sweat dripped down into the bottom of James' airtight helmet. He shook it of, and threw his knife into the Sangheili's jaw. He ripped it out, his entire top left mandible with it, and threw it precisely at Georgia's arm. She screamed in agony, and James' blue eyes widened. He ran to Georgia, and took the knife out of her arm, grabbing a can of biofoam, and emptying it onto her arm. He stayed kneeling down beside her, and shot at the weak Zealot. The Marine was already gone, but the Zealot, angrier than ever. James stood up, and grabbed Georgia's M90 Shotgun. He charged at the Zealot, blasting and cocking his Shotgun, until the Zealot collapsed, his Energy Sword disabling. James picked up the handle of the sword, and shoved it into the Zealot's mouth. Knowing the Zealot's DNA, it reactivated, and the beam of light went right through the Sangheil's skull, instantly killing him. James looked up, the Warthog had been dropped. It was a Troop Transport. James turned back to Georgia, who still lay on the ground. James removed her helmet, and carried her to the Warthog, lying her down on the passenger seat. He then got in the Driver's seat, and motioned the rest of the squad to get in. Part Two The Warthog zoomed pass the large, and destroyed, satellite dish. The squad seemed tense, James, horribly nervous. He looked at Georgia. Her eyes were closed, but she was still breathing. Suddenly, all the noise, the gunshots, the yelling, the growls, everything, went silent. James was focused on protecting Georgia. Suddenly, the silent hum in James' ears started to whine. It was in two seconds, that the whine came back to noise, and then, the Warthog flipped. James grabbed Georgia midair, and landed on his back. He held her tight. James looked back, a Banshee passed. It had launched its Fuel Rod Cannons at the Warthog. James ripped off his helmet, his visor cracked, and breathed in the smokey air. James choked. He hated smoke, but it was harder to breathe in the foul smelling, sweat filled air of the helmet. James picked up Georgia, and she began to awake. She stumbled, and then looked at her, arm, then to James, and smiled, saying, "Thanks," James smiled back, and then the squad started to run. Just a few meters ahead, and to the left, was the entrance to the saferoom, and a Marine with a Rocket Launcher. But to the right, was something no one at the battle had seen before, Brutes. A Brute Chieftain smacked the Marine with his Gravity Hammer, and the Marine went flying. The door to the saferoom snapped shut, leaving the ODSTs outside. Red blood speckled the ground, turning it into maroon sand. James saw the cause. Boomer. He lie on the ground, his mouth open, his eyes closed. Right through his ribs, into his lungs, was a large, burning spike. The Sergeant ran over, and pulled the spike out. The bleeding got worse, and the smell of burnt hair filled the ssurroundinmg air. James cocked Georgia's shotgun, and charged at a Brute Minor. Before he could get close enough, a sniper shot went right through a Brute's head, the two-toned blood falling out. The Chieftain turned, and charged, swinging his Gravity Hammer in the air. He was about to hit Georgia, when James jumped in front of her, being hit through the air like a baseball. He landed on top of the scorching hot flipped Warthog, and yelled in pain. He jumped up, and grabbed his M6C SOCOM. He charged the Chieftain, blasting him with the pistol, faster than he did to the Zealot. The Brute eventually retreated, passing by the newly opened saferoom door, when 102mm HEAT missile rocketed through the saferoom door, blowing the Chieftain into pieces. His blood splattered along the ground, and the squad followed the trail of red and blue, to the saferoom door. It closed behind them, and everyone yelled in rejoice. The War The War had begun. Thousands of Covenant had invaded thousands of planets. Mars was next. The homeworld of George Ruin, and James Gray, was about to be glassed by Covenant Forces. James and Georgia were now dating, but nothing serious do to their status. And the war was about to take a turn no one saw. Fleet Master Ryku 'Voldunee, was about to bring his entire fleet, to Mars, just to destroy the surrounding ships. And when the time was right, Ryku would glass the planet... Or so he thought... The Beginning The fleet had arrived. No one saw it coming. The fleet destroyed fifteen unsuspecting Frigates, and continued into the atmosphere. Every ship in the fleet was hovering above the millions of citizens on the planet of, Mars. Homeworld to George Ruin, and James Gray. And Here The Story Begins The following chapters will be written in story form. Mars Under War Ryku looked at the holo-map. It displayed a terraformed Mars. Ryku hit a certain spot on the holo-map with his finger. It zoomed in, showing a low-detail model of every ship in the fleet. Ryku voiced into the holo-map, and said, "Holo-Map, deactivate." The holographic projection went down. Ryku looked at the Major standing at attention, and growled at him, "Begin the process. Glass those insolent beings and their planet out of this universe." The Major nodded, and ran over. Soon, the entire fleet was glassing the planet, starting with the Crater Lakes. The largest lake formation in the Milky Way, made entirely out of Craters. ---- Thousands of miles below, a fan took a picture of the geyser erupting at the park. He showed it to his wife. She turned around, and screamed. It was the last thing the couple heard. They were melted into oblivion. Wiped from the planet, by a massive beam of light. The geyser was plugged. The Park Ranger spoke to a curious tourist. The ranger said, "We have some of the safest parks on Mars! Nope, not a thing to bug us here. Not even-" Before the Ranger was finished, the entire Navajo Lake was engulfed in glass. The water evaporated, the tourists melted, and the sand was glassed. ---- A red light flashed on in the bunks of the station. George looked up, she saw the flashing lights, a sign of a great disturbance. She jumped down, and looked at James. His eyes were wide. He knew what had happened. A glassing. James grabbed his pants, and rushed out the door, George following him. Avery Lewis, Jerry Buckham, and Nathan Wilson, rushed to attention. They watched as James and George rushed out the door. They were gone. The two looked out the window, and saw horror. The entire Crater Lakes were black. With a slight shimmer, and Covenant Ships could be seen, getting ready to glass more of the planet. James screamed, getting the looks of other members of the crew aboard the ship. He looked at Georgia, and hugged her. Then left the foyer, off into the SOEIV Deck. Avery, Jerry, and Nathan were already there, looking at a holographic projection of the Crater Lakes on a table. They turned around, and motioned James. Georgia came in, and followed, looking at the screen. The light reflected off of James eyes, created a blue illusion. A tear ran down his eye, and then another. They dripped onto the table, blurring the screen for a second. Avery stood up, and told James, "There were no survivors in the Crater's. They were all, melted. James slammed his fist on the table. The projection went off. The room was dark. James stood up. "Are we going to let Mars be glassed?! No! Are going to let what happened to Harvest, happen to Mars!? If we attack the source, then we can kill the roots. Do you know what I mean?!" James finished, and the lights flickered on. James walked up to his armor, and put his helmet on. "Let's go kill some Covenant." He murmured. Mars on the Run "You little rascals got away from your duties yesterday, not gonna happen again. Your gonna work double time!", Avery laughed, and then looked at James. James looked up, "Hah, nice one sir." "I wasn't kidding boy...", Avery's smile turned into a frown. Boomer intervened, "Sir, this isn't the time for all this. We gotta get to the cruiser!" Avery nodded. He walked to his SOEIV, and removed his cap. He put it in the empty gun rack, his MA5B ICWS in the other. He then put on his helmet, and swerved his head towards the other SOEIVs. The squad each got into their pods, every one of them closing, and then turning around. James popped his neck. And the two display channels sparked to life. The Captain appeared on one, Boomer on the other. James saw three SOEIVs pop down, and he became nervous, like he always did before a Combat Drop. He took a deep breath, and studied the Assault Carrier looming below. Then he felt a sharp jerk, and started to drop. The heat grew inside the SOEIV, and James began to sweat. He saw a beam come up from the Carrier, and watched, as the UNSC Argis was damaged. "What the he-", Boomer started, his face on the Display turning pale. "Holy! The Frigate was hit by a Pulse Laser!", Georgia yelled, looking at the destruction above. Another beam came from the ship, missing the Frigate by mere inches. The Argis backed away, and pulled out of shooting range. The captain remained silent, and for a few seconds after, so did the entire squad. The Drag Chute opened up, and the ODSTs slowed. James head went back, his sweat traveling up. The immense heat was killing James, but he was only meters away from the entrance. Suddenly, James felt a boom, and the view outside his SOEIV became purple. He hit the top floor, but kept going. James looked up as he saw the others land. Something went wrong. James heard a final crash, and looked down, he was 50 feet above the Hangar Bay in the ship. He was hanging on some kind of a crane, and had to jump out, or would be left there. The display now only showed a black. The entire SOEIV was deactivated, and for once, there was no noise whatsoever. James hit the OPEN HATCH button, and every control and screen lit up and displayed, WARNING: RUNNING ON EMERGENCY POWER. James hit the button OPEN HATCH button again, and the hatch popped off, falling to the hard, cold floor below. James lost his grip,, and tumbled down, the wind brushing on his face. James landed on his back, on top of a deactivated Wraith. HE moaned in pain, and opened his eyes, only to see a Sangheili with a Plasma Rifle to James' face. James kicked the Sangheili of his feet, and the confused alien shot at the ceiling. James grabbed his Plasma Rifle, and unloaded its remaining battery onto the Sangheili's face. James stood up, and looked around. His squad must have been floors above, and James was going to have to fight his way to them. James turned his head, and the sound of a whoosh. Hunters. And they weren't going down without a fight. James, taking quick action, jumped inside the Wraith, and it sprung to life. He fired it, blasting a Hunter through the hull of the ship, and blowing the other out too. James' Wraith began to pull, and he immediately t=hit the brakes, slowing the Wraith down. An Energy Shield closed up the hole, and James was relieved. He opened the Wraith's hatch, and looked up. He turned the Wraith while still standing up, and aimed the cannon towards the hole in the ship, where James had fallen through. James fired, and the hole became bigger. He jumped out of the Wraith, and ran to the door where the Hunters had come out of. He opened it, and ran up, only to be met by a Major Domo. The Major growled, and ran at James. James saw the Major swing his arm down, and pulled back, he then jumped up, landed on top of the Major's arm, and did a barrel roll behind. The Major looked back, and James was already gone. James ran to the second floor, and saw three sleeping Grunts. He blasted them with his Plasma Rifle, and continued forward. James saw the entrance to the third floor, and jumped, time slowing down. He saw a Gravity Hammer swing out of no where, and was blown back. James charged forward, and grabbed a hold of the Hammer. He swung his leg up, and watched, as saliva, a yellow tooth, and bit of blood, came up from the Chieftain's mouth. The Chieftain shook his head, and ran at James, who was already inside the hallway headed up. The door slammed shut, and a dent appeared in it. The lighting around it turned red, and it was locked. ---- James walked forward, and de-polarized his visor. He stepped unto a sort of terminal, and started recording. Audio played, and a holographic projection appeared. The Prophet of Truth appeared, and reversed audio was being played. A bar was recoding the speech of Truth, and when it finished, James re-polarized his viso, and played back the sound, backwards. The footage began: "On this day, my men, we bring forth the 100,000th glassing of the planets. This is a special day, so we must make it a special fight! We will wipe this vermin from the very sand on which the stand, and then we will glass their home. For the Great Journey we fight! Onward to the Covenant, for victory is in our hands!" James turned off the footage, and saved it to a database on an unknown UNSC Cruiser. He turned around, and only saw a fist. Then it all went black... ---- James found himself in the Brig. He saw a Brute Chieftain, three Grunt Minors, and a few Brute Stalkers among him. He saw the other members of the team there too. He looked up. He was being watched by a security feed, and an airvent. The most stereotypical escape route. He laughed, as he started to reach for his knife. It was there, but his laugh had attracted two Stalkers. They opened the shield doors and laughed. He laughed again, with them. His training had prepared him for this. He stood up. One stalker struck with his left hand, but James dodged, and grabbed the hand, pulling the Brute towards him. He stabbed the Brute's head with his knife, and swung it around, slicing the Brute's face in half, to the other Brute. The Chieftain still hadn't noticed. The surprised Stalker looked up in disbelief as he saw the Steel knife gouge into his lungs. He gasped for air, and collapsed, blood coming out of his mouth, as James pulled the knife out. The Chieftain sniffed the air, and looked over at James. The Brute's eyes widened. James charged over to the Brute, but felt a sharp stinging pain in his side. A Spiker. He turned around and sliced the Brute's mouth off with his knife, and turned around, only to get whacked by the Chieftain's hammer. James shook his head, as Spike in his stomach, a broken rib, and a team helplessly watching from the sidelines. James jumped up, his entire chest in pain, and ran towards the Chieftain. He picked up a Spiker on the way, tearing up any Stalkers who tried to get in his way. The Chieftain roared out, his mouth wide, as James shot a Spike into it. Right through the throat. The Chieftain screamed in agony, and collapsed to the floor. James was filled with anger. He picked up his hammer, and swung it on the Chieftain. "That's for tryin' to glass my planet!" He swung again, saying, "That's for capturing my squad!" And he swung for the third time, the Chieftains skull flattened. "And, that, is for the UNSC!" He walked to the control panel, stepping on the Brute's already battered face, and deactivated the Shield Doors. The squad walked out, and smiled. Avery spoke first, his voice raised, "Nice job boy! You took down an entire squad of them Brutes, with a knife and a Spiker? Not even I've done that. Anyways... We got a ship to destroy! Let's go!" The squad all laughed, and followed Avery out to the halls of the ship. Mars- Endwar Newscasts boomed everywhere on Mars, "Stay indoors at all times, keep away from windows and exits, take shelter in basements or cellars!", but none of these newscasts were from Mars. They were from other surrounding planets. Those left at Mars were the Stranded. And no one else was there. The UNSC was gone. The businessman and women were gone, the big time millionaires, gone. The only ones left were the low and middle-class. They had no escape. Meanwhile... Avery lead the way. He opened the door, and found a surprised Grunt in waiting. It yelped, and ran off. Soon, three Sangheili cam through the door. They stepped back as they were greeted by a team of ODSTs. The team opened fire first, as the Sangheili jump back through the door, locking it, as a grenade went in. The last thing they heard was the clank of the grenade bouncing on the ground. The team went on, killing Covenant, one by one. They traveled through three floors, until they reached the bridge. The door opened, and on a hoverchair, was Ryku 'Voldunee. He was the mastermind behind the glassing. The squad raised their weapons, and so did the Bodyguards. Gray frowned at them, only to get a small giggle from Georgia. This was a bad move. They pointed their rifles at her. James knew what he had to do. He grabbed his Spiker, his team with their stolen weapons, and opened fire. It was a heated battle, Georgia, Shotgunned them, Cheap-Shot cocked and cocked his rifle, blasting their head's off with a rifle, and Boomer threw flurries of grenades and rockets at them. By the time all the Sangheili were dead, the bridge looked like a tornado hit. The squad walked over to the fallen and damaged hoverchair, expecting to see the dead body when the Sangheili de-cloaked and slashed the back of Avery, in the back of the huddle. He cursed at the Elite, falling to the floor, as the squad scattered. The Elite was standing in the middle of the room, as the ODSTs were around it, behind cover and walls. Georgia spoke looked around, seeing that everyone was down on ammo. But James poked his head up, and took his helmet off. He dropped it on the floor, as the Sangheili walked over to him. Georgia ran over to the Sangheili, and stabbed it in the neck, but it swung back, punching her in the nose. The Sangheili knew he was going to die, so he pulled the knife out of his neck, and lunged at James with it. James swung up to the main platform, dodging the attack. He grabbed his Spiker, and stabbed the Elite in the crotch with it. The poor Sangheili screamed in pain. James then stabbed the Sangheili in it's mouth with the knife, leaving it there. The Elite pulled it out, violet-colored blood coming down. The Sangheili spoke, "You inferior life forms! We will glass your system until it is but ash! And not even you will live, to watch it, blackened from it's core!" James jumped up to the Sangheili, dodging a final sword lunge, and Stabbed the Sangheili through his armor, the twin bayonets going into both his hearts. James pulled his hand back, leaving the Spiker in his chest, and watched as the Sangheili collapsed to his knees. Then onto his stomach, blood pouring out of the holes in his chest. James grabbed the Spiker, and unscrewed a bayonet. It was covered in blood. James removed the Sangheili's helmet, and stabbed the bayonet in. The Sangheili died instantly. James leaned down and spoke to the dead Sangheili, "You mess with my team, I mess with your life." Georgia walked over to Avery, his hand covered in violet blood, his back full of red blood. He stood up, and laughed, "Again... You did it. Now let's blow this joint." Avery limped over to the controls, and opened up the bombing bay. He didn't open the shield doors, but activated the bombs. Five minutes. The team smiled, and walked out the bridge. And then they began running. All over, dead bodies scattered. The team kept running. James looked at his HUD's timer. 2:19. And they still had two floors to cover. James looked off into the bay, and a crazy idea. He motioned to the team, a Spirit Dropship on the floor below. James yelled, "We can make it! Follow me!" James jumped off the edge. He knew that he would break both his legs if he landed flat, so he jumped towards the Spirit. He grabbed onto the edge, and jumped onto the platform, opened the cockpit, and motioned his teammates. He watched the timer tick. 0:41. First Georgia jumped, opening the bay doors. Boomer and Cheap-Shot made it, and got into the bay, waiting for Avery. 0:13. Avery jumped, and piled into the cockpit. He and James piloted, flying out of the ship as it blew up just seconds behind them... They flew into a UNSC Cruiser, and watched as the CCS Battlecruisers scattered, like Unggoy with no Sangheili. The ships jumped to hyperspace, the UNSC Cruisers following, as the squad left back to the debriefing room. It was over. The team had done it. They had saved Mars from complete destruction... Or at least most of it... "He's more than a hero, believe what you see..."- Iron Man الخواتم عشرة (The Ten Rings) The Pelican came into view, the back hatch open. Cheap-Shot loaded his Sniper Rifle. James de-polarized his visor, and looked at his teammates. They were all sweating. They were on the desert planet of Qari, a planet filled with the poorest of Humans, and Insurgencies like crazy. The team was out for one certain one, the Ten Rings. James looked off. They were descending. A small village was in the distance, and there were some things that looked... Out of place. The villagers had not seen them yet. The Pelican slowed to a stop, and hovered next to a dune. Avery jumped off, then Cheap Shot, and then James. Georgia came out next, and then Boomer. Boomer spoke first, "Those terrorists got something comin' if they mess with me!" Boomer than tapped his Rocket Launcher, and laughed. Avery knew what the plan would be. He looked out into the dunes, and then looked back, saying, "The mission is simple. We are gonna go in, kill the insurgents, and free the village. Let's go!" The team started up the dune, the Pelican lifting off, when a missile came rocketing up from the village. It hit the ascending Pelican, which went flying in the other direction. The team watched it go, as it spun into the dunes, exploding, and turning them into glass. Avery de-polarized his Visor, his eyes widened. The Pelican had been shot down by a UNSC weapon. The M44SRWD-Anti Air Artillery. Cheap-Shot climbed to the top of the dune, and put his Sniper Rifle on the sand. He looked into it's scope, watching around the village. Directly in the center, was the Air Artillery. Below it was the mount for a water fountain. The insurgents meant business. Cheap-Shot took another look around, and running through the streets, were four insurgents, wielding MA5B Assault Rifles. Cheap-Shot motioned the Squad, and Boomer laughed, saying, "I got something for 'em!" He tapped his Rocket again, and looked down the scopes. Avery pulled him back, responding, "No, we don't wanna make too much noise. Cheap-Shot, get your Sniper ready." Cheap-Shot nodded, "Already locked and loaded sir!", he concluded. He saw that they were getting closer, and shot once. An insurgents head blew off. Then the others stopped. They raised their rifles, and began to shoot. Cheap-Shot ducked down, and blasted, "This is where you guys come in!", James raised his Shotgun and jumped over the dune, blasting an insurgent back with the rifle. He swung around and hit another insurgent with the barrel of his Shotgun. He shot down the last Insurgent when he felt a large wave of heat pass him. He then felt sand fly everywhere, and a sharp pain. A HEAT round. Another UNSC Weapon. James turned around, and an Insurgent had his Rocket Launcher pointed right at him. James jumped out of the way and grabbed his Shotgun. The Insurgent couldn't get James to stand still, but what the insurgent didn't notice was that he was standing still. A few seconds later, another HEAT round flew out from behind the dune, and the Insurgent was blown apart. In the few seconds of calm, James ran back behind the dune, and saw Boomer reloading his Rocket. He laughed, and said, "I told you I had something for 'em!". James smiled, and looked at the captain. He spoke, yelling, "We have to advance, or were gonna get blasted all the way to kingdom come!" The team walked up the hill, met with more insurgents. It was on. Quotations :PFC Riker Johnston: "Hah! I just blew a hole in that Bravo Kilo, sir!" :James Gray: "Don't get too excited, you'll do that a lot in your time as a marine." :Riker Johnston: "But, sir!" :James Gray: "Shut your pie hole soldier!" :—James Gray and Private First Class Riker Johnston argue about killing a Jiralhanae. ERROR1213435465789CORRUPTDATA23668889903217SEC.BREACH5